You can partition a large hard drive to better organize your files and data.
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You can partition your IBM/Hitachi hard drive from within Windows to better organize your files, more easily back up specific data, add a second operating system or change the disk format to be compatible with a different operating system like Mac OS X. The new partition is recognized as a separate hard drive in Windows.
Step 1
Open the Windows "Start" menu and click "Control Panel." Click "System and Security," then click "Create and Format Hard Disk Partitions" in the "Administrative Tools" section of the window. All hard drives and their sizes will display.
Step 2
Right-click on the drive you want to partition in the list at the top or the graphic display below and choose "Shrink Volume" from the context menu. Windows will determine the size and available space for a new partition on the drive. This process can take a few minutes if you are partitioning a large hard drive.
Step 3
Use the arrows next to the "Enter the Amount of Space to Shrink in MB" text box or type in the number of megabytes for your new partition. The maximum available space for the new partition is filled in and your new partition cannot be larger than that amount. You can also create multiple additional partitions out of the available free space. Click "Shrink."
Step 4
Right-click the new partition in the graphic display. The partition displays "Unallocated." Select "New Simple Volume" from the context menu. Click "Next." Leave the maximum space at the default amount if you are creating one new partition and click "Next." Adjust the maximum space if you are creating multiple additional partitions and click "Next." Click "Next" to format the new partition. Right-click other new partitions if you are creating more than one and allocate the space into new simple volumes, then format each partition. Click "Finish."
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- Medioimages/Photodisc/Photodisc/Getty Images
